


Ile de Re

by Allie1804



Category: celebrities and real people
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Heartache, Older, Older Man/Younger Woman, Romance, Vaginal Sex, World Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-03
Updated: 2020-04-12
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:42:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23464129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Allie1804/pseuds/Allie1804
Summary: Keanu Reeves meets a French chef while researching for a role. Romance ensues
Kudos: 6





	1. Meeting

Chapter 1

April 2020

Keanu hung up the phone and quietly fist pumped to himself. He’d just had news that a new project had been green lit. It was one he’d been collaborating on for some time - where he’d play an American chef, somewhat down on his luck who was establishing a new restaurant in a rural French town. The thing that thrilled him most was that the project afforded him the chance to finally learn how to cook – at least a bit - because he’d need to demonstrate some skill in the film itself and to ‘find’ his character he wanted to understand more about the craft of being a chef – especially the passion that drove them.  
He went to his office and pulled out his laptop, opening a file holding details of some chefs who Erwin’s team had tracked down that fit the bill in terms of the knowledge they had and their personal experiences. He dropped an e mail first to a chef names Yves Le Gouhier and another to a woman called Claire Bonnevin. They each had restaurants in LA but were French natives who had trained at home before heading to America to open restaurants of their own. He hoped that the guy would say yes since he felt he’d probably relate better to his experience however he checked out both of their bios and looked at restaurant reviews on line.  
A few days later, the decision was made for him as to who would give him the coaching as Mr Le Gouhier was out of town for at least a couple of months, establishing a new restaurant whereas Ms Bonnevin was able to fit him in for some daily ‘classes’ starting the following week. Whilst mildly disappointed, he also recalled that he’d actually eaten at Ms Bonnevin’s place once and had really rated the cooking which mixed homespun flavours with Gallic finesse - the seafood there was to die for. He responded quickly in the affirmative, and ever the perfectionist, asked if there was anything he needed to bring or any preparatory work he could do before Monday. Claire replied that if he could let her have a working copy of the script and tell her what his favourite meal was before the weekend – they could work on the skills he’d need to demonstrate in the film and, depending on what the meal was, also aim to make his favourite meal to a good standard by the end of the week. If he had some friends who’d like to eat what he made, then he should ask them if they were free.  
“What a question!” he pondered, thinking about what his favourite meal was. Keanu was a man who liked to eat - so much so that he needed the counsel of his trainer Denise to keep off the pounds in between films! Would it be a good steak with garlicky greens and crushed potatoes?, veal with a cream and mushroom sauce, roast lamb with flageolets and dauphinois potatoes – this task was just making him hungry! He decided on the latter thinking it would be a challenge and fitted with the style of cooking they had at “Le Chat Botte” which was Claire’s restaurant. The pressure of feeding something he’d made that wasn’t bacon and eggs or a peanut butter and jelly sandwich was both thrilling and un-nerving. He messaged his sister Kim, his mother and friends Rob, Alex and Josh who were all pleased to be free although they joked that they might need to go to Macdonald’s to fill up afterwards!  
Monday came around and Keanu pulled up at “Le Chat Botte” at 9am prompt. Entering via the service entrance as instructed, he walked into a spotless kitchen with gleaming stainless steel work stations, hobs and ovens ranged along one wall and a large wooden kitchen table in the centre which had 2 sets of chopping boards in different colours along with a variety of knives, spatulas and other cooking implements arranged side by side in the centre of the table. No-one was in sight though Keanu could hear the sound of a voice coming from an adjoining room. Walking across the kitchen he stuck his head round the door of what turned out to be an office where he saw a petite, dark haired woman he recognised (from her bio) as Claire Bonnevin - she was speaking to someone on the phone in French. She raised her hand to him in greeting, mouthing sorry and hurried to complete the call.  
“Oui, Oui, je te rapellerai demain - mon nouvel client vient d’arriver, oui oui c’est lui, donc il faut que j’accroche. D’accord d’accord, je sais. Au revoir”  
Claire turned to Keanu blushing - she had the distinct impression that he’d understood that she’d just referred to him in her conversation.  
“so sorry about that – that was my restaurant manager back home in France just giving me an update on my dad - he’s not been too well recently so we’ve been talking every day” Her English accent was excellent with only a slight gallic note.  
Keanu stuck out his hand  
“Nice to meet you Ms Bonnevin and no problem – you didn’t need to rush them off the line on my account”  
Claire smiled and shook his hand, “I heard you were impossibly polite! – of course I did, I was eating into your paid time – nice to meet you too by the way. Keanu grinned - Claire could feel the colour rising in her cheeks again - she wasn’t exactly sure why - maybe it was the directness of his gaze or the brilliance of his smile.  
“So, are you ready for your training?”  
Keanu chuckled and responded with what he thought was the expected reply “hell yeah” but Claire didn’t react, “maybe the Matrix reference was unintentional” he thought – she was pretty young after all, (her bio said she was 35) so maybe she was one of the few whom it had passed by!  
“So let’s go through to the kitchen and get started” she said leading the way back to the room where Keanu had entered earlier.  
For the next 4 hours they talked through and tried out some of the particular skills that would be needed in kitchen scenes. Whilst they worked, they got to know each other a little with Claire wanting to find out about Keanu’s food knowledge and experience and Keanu quizzing her about her beginnings in the industry. He discovered that she grew up on a tiny west coast island in France called L’Ile de Re” where her Dad still owned a restaurant called, like hers in LA, “Le Chat Botte”. He no longer worked as a chef there but lived in the little village where it was, hence the manager being able to keep Claire appraised of his health. She’d learned her craft there and then moved on to train in Paris, New York and then LA to establish her namesake restaurant in the US.  
For her part, from what Keanu said, she could see that despite not having grown up in a house where people had a passion for cooking, he nevertheless clearly had a passion for food - from the humble sandwich to fine foods from around the globe. He was also a quick study, picking up the knife skills needed to finely chop onions and garlic on film that he’d need. She was a patient teacher, though she would occasionally break into French when she was struggling to communicate the exact technique such as when at first he couldn’t master the rotation of the knife needed to chop finely:  
“tient tient, comme ca” she said, placing her hand over his to show how the blade needed to rock back and forth over the garlic.  
At 12 they broke for lunch at which point Claire challenged Keanu to make her his best sandwich from the ingredients on hand. He asked her what she liked and created a layered club sandwich which she declared excellent. By the time he left at 1pm, Keanu was convinced that she was an excellent choice of teacher and one he’d enjoy learning from. He could hardly wait for the next day when they were going to study cuts of meat by going to Claire’s favourite butcher.  
The week progressed with a mix of hands on cooking classes and continued trips to suppliers which served to explain the importance of provenance and quality ingredients. They also worked on timings and started to plan the stages of creating the menu Keanu had planned for Friday’s lunch.  
On Thursday Keanu tried out the dauphinois potatoes and was thrilled with the result - he was really starting to enjoy cooking and his rapid growth in skill. Claire praised him warmly and suggested he try a dessert as well for the next day.  
“You could try something simple like a mousse au chocolat but I think you’re ready to really wow them”  
“Oh yeah?” Keanu grinned “With what?”  
“A tarte Tatin”  
“What!, are you sure?”  
“Absolutely – you’re an excellent student - let’s do one today together, you’ll master it I’m sure”  
She showed him how to prepare the sugar and butter in a special tin that could go on the stove and then in the oven to finish. They prepped the apples placing them rounded side down in the tin and proceeded to caramelise the butter and sugar until it was a gorgeous molten mahogany. Then he learned how to make the shortcrust pastry using cool hands to rub the butter into the flour then bring it together to a dough which rested in the fridge. Once rolled out, he placed it onto the cooled apples, tucking in the edges round the sides. The result when they turned the tarte out (upside down to reveal the apples) was amazing – sweet, tender apples with the sugary caramel cut a little by freshly grated lemon rind and a melt in the mouth pastry to top it off.  
“See!” she smiled, “I knew you could do it”  
“No, you did it!” he grinned  
“Well, OK so today we both did it but tomorrow it will all be down to you”  
Friday came and Keanu got to the restaurant at 8am wanting to have as much time as possible to get everything perfect.  
By 11.30 the lamb was resting, his gratin and tarte were in the oven and the beans were simmering gently.  
The meal was beginning with a simple salade aux lardons - it was time to dress it with the vinaigrette he’d made earlier. He started to toss it gently but some lettuce flipped out over the side  
“Watch out you don’t drop too many said Claire – unless you want lots of children’ she laughed!  
“What?” Keanu asked, shooting her a quizzical look.  
“it’s a saying we have in France that the number of leaves you drop when you’re tossing the salad tells you the number of kids you’ll have.  
“Oh right” he chuckled, “that’s cute, but it’s way too late for that”  
“What do you mean?, you’d have time to have them if you wanted, surely”  
“I’m too old Claire”  
“What, you must only be what?”, she paused to look at him and consider his face “…. About 45”  
“Ha ha” Keanu laughed heartily.  
“No, I’m fifty five”  
“Merde” she exclaimed “ce n’est pas possible!”  
Keanu shook his head and smiled - he loved how she reverted to French when she was reacting spontaneously to something.  
“I’m afraid it’s true, so even if I had a wife or even a girlfriend, I still think it’s too late to be having babies. I might be dead before they’re 20 or 30.  
Claire’s face clouded over  
“Sorry I didn’t mean to be all maudlin” he said  
“Don’t worry, it’s just my mother died when I was 25 so I know that’s hard – but people die all the time, young and old.  
“Ain’t that the truth” Keanu agreed quietly, remembering his own past.  
“and lots of guys have babies when they’re older. Maybe you shouldn’t rule it out”  
“Maybe maybe, anyway, enough serious talk, we should raise a toast before our guests arrive”  
He poured himself and Claire a glass of wine.  
“Here’s to satisfied customers!” she said  
“and here’s to you for being such an amazing teacher – I can’t believe you’ve got me this far so fast”  
“well that’s really down to you” she replied, smiling, “you work so hard and learn so quickly, it’s very impressive”  
“I don’t know about that!” he said blushing, “Anyway, let’s not get ahead ourselves, I haven’t served it yet!!  
They put down their glasses and Claire went to see if the guests had arrived at the table they had set aside in the restaurant. Meanwhile Keanu busied himself with finishing the salad and carving the lamb which he was happy to see was just the right shade of pink. He put it in the warming oven and also took out the tarte Tatin praying that it would be as good as the one yesterday when he turned it out later. Finally, with the main course as ready as it could be, he took the salad and some French bread through to the dining room.  
The meal went down a storm - at the end Keanu stood and raised a toast to Claire  
“Thank you for all your kind words folks but we really need to toast this amazing lady who has taught this old meat head some cooking skill. He took her hand and placed it over his heart  
“ thank you, thank you, merci beaucoups, I’ll be forever grateful!”  
Claire laughed and blushed.  
“Just wait until next week when we’ll have you working in the restaurant kitchen, then you might not be such a fan!”  
He laughed  
“That may be!”  
They said their goodbyes to Keanu’s amazed guests and went to clean down the kitchen.  
“How’s your dad by the way?”  
“Oh about the same apparently – no better, but no worse, he just needs to take it easy and stay off his damn bike”  
“Oh, a pushbike or a motorbike?” Keanu asked, his interest peaked  
“A push bike – he’s not a racer guy like you!” Claire saw Keanu pull up each day often on different bikes so she knew about his passion for them.  
“everyone goes everywhere on bikes on the Ile de Re” she continued - it’s a cyclist’s paradise with cycle paths across the salt marshes and oyster beds and through the forests. But he had a heart attack last year and whilst he is supposed to exercise, he just pushes himself too much and that worries me”  
“Do you have any other family there to keep an eye on him?”  
“No, I’m an only child and there are no aunts or uncles either.  
“Is your father still alive? She asked.  
“Yeah – well at least I haven’t heard otherwise! He left my mother when I was three and I haven’t seen him since I was 13.”  
“Mon dieu that must have been tough growing up without a dad”  
“Yeah well I had my mum and my sister - he wouldn’t have been a good role model anyway”  
“I could see today that you adore Kim and your mother”  
“Yeah, yeah I do - family and friends are my rocks to come back to - after every project that’s what I look forward to”  
“You know you’re not at all what I expected!” Claire stated.  
“Oh, how so?” he asked  
“Well, a couple of people I mentioned you to said they heard you were a nice guy and very polite but I guess I just expected someone more ………..starry, you know!”  
Keanu burst out laughing.  
“Well I’ll take that as a complement” he said  
“you should – you’ve made it a very easy first week of teaching” she smiled  
“Well thanks” he said the colour rising in his cheeks.  
They finished up in the kitchen and Keanu took his leave saying he’d see her at 9am prompt on Monday for his week in the working kitchen. He’d enjoyed her company so much that he’d almost asked her to dinner but held himself in check. She was so much younger than him and he knew his feelings weren’t entirely platonic. She was very cute with olive skin, beautiful eyes and a slender yet not too skinny figure – he didn’t really have a type but she hit the spot with him. He’d just have to quash those thoughts, focus on the learning and keep things on a friendly footing.


	2. Sad Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keanu goes to his second lesson but Claire has some bad news

Chapter 2  
As promised, Keanu arrived at Le Chat Botte at 9am on Monday morning, going through their teaching area and looking for Claire in the office. Not finding her there he went through to the main restaurant kitchen and saw her leaning over some menus talking to one of the chefs. She turned towards him on hearing the door and he raised his hand to wave hi but immediately dropped it seeing her stricken expression. She hurried towards him saying  
“Oh Keanu I am so so sorry, I should have called, I can’t teach you this week, I ….”  
“What’s happened, you look ill”  
“My” she took a shaky breath, “My father, he died at the weekend”  
“Oh shit, gosh I’m so sorry!”

“So you see, I have to go home. I leave tomorrow and it may be a few weeks before I can settle his affairs and come back to LA. I forgot about you and I’m so sorry you’ve wasted a journey”  
Keanu grasped her hand and reassured her that she shouldn’t worry about him, her priorities were elsewhere. As he held her hand, all he could think of was her lonely trip home and the fact that she now found herself an orphan. He spoke on instinct.  
“Claire, do you have anyone to go with you?”  
She shook her head in the negative. He went on:  
“This might sound crazy, but, would you like me to accompany you? I can’t stand the thought of you making that long journey home, all alone in your grief. I need to go to France at some point anyway to scout for locations for the film so I could tie that in and be some company for you. If you’d rather go alone that’s fine but, well, like I say it’s a long way on your own at a time like this.”  
“I don’t know what to say” she sniffed, “that’s possibly the kindest thing anyone has ever done for me.”  
He smiled, “So you’ll let me accompany you?”  
“I’d be extremely grateful, yes”  
“So that’s settled then. Do you have your flight details? I’ll try to get on the same flight as you. Do I go to Paris or somewhere else?  
“Paris, yes and then we’d get the TGV (she pronounced it “tay jay vay”) to La Rochelle and from there we can get a taxi or a bus to the island. We can use my Dad’s car once we’re there. I’ll go fetch the details for you – she headed to the office and Keanu followed. Once he’d got the details, he made to leave and make arrangements. She touched his arm and whispered  
“I really am so very grateful, you really are a kind soul”   
He reached for her hand and squeezed it “I’m just happy to help - I’ll e mail you later when I know what flight I can get, OK?”  
“OK, see you soon”  
Back at home, Keanu managed to book himself a seat on the same flight. He booked first class – he wasn’t sure what she’d done but he thought if she was in cattle, he’d just pay for her to upgrade at the airport so she could travel in comfort – he wouldn’t take no for an answer. He mailed her that he’d succeeded and they arranged to meet at the airport at 1 the next day. The flight was at 3 and arrived in Paris at close to 11am. They’d be on the island by the next evening.


	3. The Journey

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keanu and Claire make the journey to her home in France

Chapter 3

The next day at check in, they had the debate Keanu had expected about him paying for her to upgrade and fly first class.  
“Listen Claire, I’ve made a lot of money over the years – too much to ever spend and, when I can, I like to help people out. Just let me do this for you, so you can travel in comfort, OK. At a time like this, it seems like a very good use of my money, OK?”  
“OK, OK and thank you”  
That achieved, they went through to the first class lounge and onto the flight.  
Once aboard Claire looked around at the fancy and spacious surroundings:  
“I feel bad that I won’t really appreciate this as much as I should given my mood right now!”  
“hey, just appreciate the comfortable sleep you’ll have and don’t worry about the rest” he reassured her.  
“Keanu, I hope you don’t mind me asking but have you lost anyone dear to you? You seem so very understanding of my grief ………”  
He sighed:  
“not many people get to 55 without experiencing loss and yeah I’ve had my share. I’m kind of surprised you don’t know – most people seem to” he stated,  
“To be honest, I barely know anything about you other than what you told me and that you were in a movie about a bomb on a bus! I’ve always been working in kitchens from being so high”, she indicated the height of a ten year old with her hand, “so I never really noticed movies and movie stars much, even living in LA where it’s all around!”  
He chuckled “well it’s very refreshing for me to meet someone who doesn’t know all about me before they meet me!”  
“So what’s your story with grief?”  
Somehow that fact that she wasn’t a fan and that the reason for asking was to share on a personal level removed his usual reticence so first he told her about River and other friends he’d lost to drugs or cancer.  
“and then there was Ava”  
“Ava?”  
“My daughter”  
“God, Keanu no I’m so sorry  
She was still born – in 1999 – she would have turned 20 last Christmas” he said, voice cracking slightly. He took a shaky breath before continuing.  
“I didn’t really want her at first. I was kind of on again, off again with her mother but then she wanted to keep the baby and the idea grew on me. Then at the last check up, they couldn’t find a heartbeat – there’d been a clot in the placenta and she died in utero, Jen had to be induced and deliver her. She came out warm and beautiful” he paused and drew a shaky breath “but dead”

“And afterwards, did you try for another child?”  
“No, no, we split up not long after – I was working on 3 films in succession straight afterwards so I couldn’t be there as much as she needed. Jen would switch rapidly from rage to sorrow, directing some of that rage at me. I was feeling guilty for not being there, for not wanting Ava in the first place - it was a mess. Then just over a year afterwards, Jen was killed in a car accident  
“God, no, I’m so sorry” Claire whispered.  
“ So I’m the last man standing, sole survivor.”  
He shook his head at the memories.  
During the whole speech, Claire had been softly rubbing her thumb up and down his and as he finished she squeezed his hand.  
“So out of your sorrow was born your compassion I guess?” she questioned  
“Yeah, yeah I guess the experience kind of attuned me to look out for others experiencing loss but also to just, you know, seize the day. It took a while and some counselling too but I guess you’re right – something good came out of it.”  
“Shall we talk about something brighter?” she asked, “how about you fill me in on something else of this life story I know so little about. Tell me where you grew up, tell me what other movies I have missed?”  
“You could just read it on-line you know” he said, “I don’t really like talking about myself that much.”  
“non, non non – I want to hear it from, don’t you say, the horse’s mouth!  
“Okay, okay”, he acquiesced, “I’ll give you some highlights”  
So Keanu shared a little of his story of growing up in Toronto, playing lots of ice hockey and then finding acting in his teens before moving aged 20 to LA to follow his dream. He picked out a few films he’d been in to share and said they could watch some if they could find them on DVD or a streaming service whilst they were there in France. It might be good to have a distraction.  
Time passed quickly as they chatted before they were given their evening meals and then settled down into comfy beds for a solid night’s sleep.  
The flight touched down at 11am local time and they headed through to get their bags and find a taxi to take them to Gare Montparnasse in central Paris to get the TGV. Just as they got off, Keanu put on sun-glasses and a cap which drew a quizzical expression from Claire. The cap didn’t really go with the smart sports jacket he had on and it wasn’t that bright.  
“Just trying to keep some anonymity” he said “so if you see any flash bulbs going or hear people calling out my name, just keep walking, don’t look their way, Paris isn’t usually too bad but airports are where the paparazzi hang out, so it could happen.  
“That must be tough to feel people might be watching you whenever you are in public!”  
“It is weird, yes – but I decided long ago, in the main, to just ignore it and get on with my life. I have given them a few fingers in my time though!” he chuckled.  
“Fingers?”  
“Oh” - he demonstrated the gesture and she burst out laughing. “Oh, I get it now!”  
An hour or so later they had arrived at the station and purchased TGV tickets to La Rochelle which they would reach by late afternoon. They snoozed on the journey, Keanu occasionally waking to look out at the lush green countryside whizzing by. It was nearly May and everything was verdant in contrast to his California home. A couple of people recognised him on the train - one woman handed him a note saying she didn’t want to invade his privacy but just wanted him to know how much she admired him and how grateful she was for all the entertainment he’d provided her over the years. He took out his boarding pass from the flight, signed it “with grateful thanks Keanu Reeves” and went to find her and say thanks in person.  
Claire woke as he was returning to his seat “Hey, where did you go?”  
Just a nice lady wrote me a note - she wanted to say hi but was too polite to bother me so I went to give her an autograph and take a picture with her.”  
“You’ll have made her year!” said Claire smiling  
“I don’t know about that”  
“Well I do!” she grinned which was met by another blushing Keanu.  
In La Rochelle, they emerged into brilliant sunshine at the spectacular station which rose majestically at the top of town a little way from the main harbour. A grand clock tower graced the centre and the building was around 100 metres wide with a large area out front for buses and taxis. Feeling tired and in need of solitude now, they hailed a cab rather than take the bus and were off to the island.  
The island is linked to the mainland by a 3km Long bridge rising on large concrete pillars to 42m high above the sea. Leaving the airport and industrial area of La Rochelle, the bridge drops down onto the island and its tranquil world of forests, sandy beaches, salt marshes, oyster beds and pretty villages of whitewashed houses with hollyhocks in all shades of pink, yellow and red climbing up the walls and springing out of the cracks in the pavements.  
“Wow this is so beautiful!” Keanu exclaimed as they drove along. Claire nodded, clearly choked up at being home  
“Happy to be home but sorry for the reason huh?” Keanu said softly, reaching out to squeeze her hand.  
“Something like that” she agreed, leaning her head against the window.


	4. Supporting Claire in her grief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claire deals with the death of her father with Keanu's support

They drove about 20 miles to the village at the top of the island called St Clement des Baleines, pulling up at around 5pm in the outskirts of the village alongside a set of old wrought iron grates painted green. Claire paid the taxi driver and then got out to open the gate while Keanu and the driver got the cases out of the boot. The gate squealed on its hinges as it opened, scraping noisily along the gravel. They passed through and Keanu saw a wisteria clad white 2 story house with outbuildings and a garage attached round an enclosed courtyard. Claire opened the front door and they crossed the threshold into an open plan living area / kitchen.  
So, this is home” she said. “Welcome to St Clement des Baleines – would you like a drink? – I can see what there is in the fridge or we could go to the café in the village”  
“To be honest I think I’d just like to take a nap then freshen up if that’s OK with you.”  
Claire’s face relaxed, relieved. ”me too actually, we can go to the restaurant later for a bite if you’re hungry then. Shall I set an alarm for 7 and wake you then if you’re not up – is that enough time?  
“Sure that’s fine, err where shall I sleep?”  
Claire showed him to the guest bedroom on the 1st floor – there was already clean linen on it as she’d asked her manager to get one of the restaurant cleaners to come in and prepare the house for their arrival. She hadn’t mentioned Keanu by name just saying instead that a friend had kindly offered to come with her.  
Later they went to her father’s restaurant and shared a plate of cheeses and cured meats along with a glass of wine each, neither being hungry for more than that after the long journey. They talked a little of the tasks Claire would have in hand and Keanu told her of his plan to rent a motorbike in order to visit some of the nearer locations he had researched for the film on days when she didn’t need him.  
“But Claire, whatever you need me to help you with, I’m here. I’m not on too tight a schedule with the location thing - this project won’t start until next year and I can stay on after you leave if needed to finish up so please don’t hesitate to ask, whatever it is.”  
A little over 2 weeks later, the majority of the business had been settled. The funeral and wake had taken place that day with the wake being held at the local village hall - her father had known everyone in the village, so they needed a large space. The legalities of passing ownership of the restaurant and house was still in process - Claire was in no hurry to sell either, listening to Keanu’s advice not to make any big decisions in haste which she might repent at her leisure.   
She’d begun sorting through some of her father’s belongings but it had been too upsetting to spend long doing it. She’d started on it one day where Keanu had gone on a road trip to check out a restaurant and he’d returned to find her slumped on the floor in the kitchen rocking back and forth holding an old stock pot!  
He’d lifted her up, coaxed her into her bed and told her it was clearly too soon and that he wanted to be there to help next time she tried.


	5. Intimate Support

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keanu's support for Claire turns into something more intimate

After seeing off the guests from the wake, they returned home. On closing the door, Claire walked into the living room and stood forlornly looking around. 

I don’t know what to do with myself now she said, I mean there are still affairs to settle yet, but I just mean ... I feel sort of lost.”

She wiped her eyes. 

Keanu pondered a moment then simply did what felt right. He went to her, wrapped his arms around her and stroked her back - “it will feel better in time you know that don’t you?” he whispered. He felt her shudder and knew she’d started to cry. Then he added: “Your grief will always be the same size and sting like hell but your life will grow around it and cushion you. Like it must have with your mother. It will still come back and bite you of course and surprise you when it does but less often in time. Time is all you can give it, just time. “

He was gently rocking her now from side to side - Keanu could feel his shirt getting wet by her tears but her breathing was calming. She felt lovely to him, pressed up against him and, he couldn’t help it, an erection started to bloom. He pushed her away slightly, embarrassed and wanting to prevent her from noticing but she pulled him back to her and looked up into his face. 

“Claire, I’m sorry, l.....” he stammered

“Shhh, she replied “Make love to me, please. I, I just need some human contact and comfort tonight. I need to feel alive, to feel, err la tendresse - how do you say that in English?”

“Tenderness” he said softly “Claire, I don’t know if it’s such a good idea, the last thing I want to do is hurt you and ......”

Just for tonight, I’m not asking for more” she pleaded. 

His expression softened, he breathed out gently then lent down to kiss her, gently cupping her face with his left hand. Her shoulders, that had been tensely hunched, relaxed and he thought that maybe this was what she needed after all. Instinctively, he knew that he could please her with his body - it was actually his heart that he was more worried about breaking than hers. During the time they’d spent together in the past 3 weeks, he’d felt his affection for her growing. He wasn’t sure just how much of that was being fuelled by the sympathy he felt for her in her grief and how much was affection for her as a person.

Their kiss deepened and he moaned into her mouth as her hands dropped down to stroke his buttocks. Breathless, he pulled back and said in his deep velvety voice, “let’s go to bed”

He led her by the hand to his room as there was a comfy double bed whereas Claire was sleeping in her old child’s bedroom with only a single bed. The room was softly moonlit as the shutters were open and a warm breeze was blowing outside. Keanu took her in his arms again and looked into her eyes 

“You sure you want to do this?” 

She nodded ‘yes’ and drew him down to kiss him again, their tongues met, gently circling each other as she raised her hands to his chest, started to unbutton his shirt and smoothed her hands over his warm hard chest. 

His own hands went behind her now seeking the zipper on her black dress. She broke away from his kiss and turned to allow him to unzip her. She stepped out of her dress and Keanu unhooked her bra, sliding the straps down her arms. He sucked in his breath as she turned back to him, letting the bra drop to the floor - she was truly lovely - the soft curve of her breasts, a firm but slightly rounded belly, shapely legs - all completed a pleasing picture. When she undid her hair from its bun, letting it fall over her shoulders he groaned and hurried to finish undressing himself. She did the same and then he scooped her up into his arms and laid her gently on the bed joining her lying on his side. 

“Tenderness” he remembered, lightly stroking her face, neck, shoulders and arms before kissing her softly at first, just closed lipped before she opened her mouth inviting him in. 

They lay kissing and stroking for several minutes before Keanu’s fingers trailed down to her pubic hair, playing with the soft hairs he found there before she arched her hips, inviting him in. Warm wetness greeted him eliciting moans from them both as passions flared.  
His fingers were light as a feather, sliding up and down her slit then softly circling her clit using the slickness he found there to ease his movements. She started to breathe harder and faster “Keanu please” she pulled on his shoulder encouraging him on top of her, but he resisted

“No wait, a condom” - he got up from the bed and rummaged in a case which he’d shoved in the corner. He always had condoms unless he was in a relationship, but he really hadn’t expected to need any on this trip hence leaving them in the case. Once equipped, he returned to her side on the bed. 

“Sorry sweetheart he said kissing her softly - now where were we?”

“You were right here” she murmured kissing him back and placing his hand on her mound. Wanting to stir her back to passion, Keanu pressed the heal of his hand down against her clit as he fixed her eyes with his, gauging her reaction. Her eyes widened and she once again pleaded with him

“Keanu, now, now, take me now”

She spread her legs open and he quickly rolled over her to position himself between them. His hard on was hot and huge - he didn’t think he’d last long. He reached down to stroke her cheek:

“I’ll go slow he reassured her, just tell me if I’m hurting you ok?”

She nodded, reaching down to jack his cock and guide him into her aching pussy. 

Keanu was as gentle as he’d promised - as he entered her, her eyes widened and she sucked in her breath so he went very slowly, letting her get used to the feel of him, kissing her languorously, swirling his tongue around hers. He felt her gradually open to him and grow wetter with each thrust - the heat of her tight pussy drove him on though he held back from the pounding he would have given her in other circumstances. 

Her need for “ tendresse “ as she called it and comfort kept his movements gentle, making their lovemaking last longer and the build up to orgasm more intense. As Keanu started to feel the pressure and tingling sensations grow, he pictured himself as an unsteady vessel at the top of a waterfall, ready to crash down to oblivion on the rocks below. Claire was breathing even more rapidly now - her pussy felt hotter than ever and she began to moan loudly. Keanu tried to hold on, almost afraid to let go. He felt like it wasn’t just the orgasm he was expecting to crash over him but the weight of a deep connection that he’d known only a few times before in his life, but he clearly recognised now. It was what he’d been afraid of when he said to Claire that maybe they shouldn’t do this, but it was too late for regrets now. He told himself that he should just live in the moment and share the comfort of release with her in the here and now. Reaching under her bottom, he pulled her up so that he was as far inside her as possible and then angled himself to ensure maximum pressure from the base of his cock against her clit.

“Oh god, oh god, yes, yes” Claire screamed and he felt the spasms of her pussy pulsing around him for a good minute which was enough for him to crash down over the waterfall too. He came with a guttural grunt followed by a long low moan, finally showering her face with soft kisses.

Still inside her, he cupped her face and smiled a smile of great tenderness.

“Do you feel some comfort now, some “tendresse”? Do you feel a little better?”

She returned his smile and nodded. For a moment it looked like she wanted to say something else but, whatever it was she chose not to. 

“Good” he said rolling onto his side “do you think you can sleep now?, I know I can!”

“Yes, yes but can I stay here with you, will you hold me tonight?”

“Of course”

She turned away and he laid his arm over her and spooned behind her.

Despite what he’d said about being ready to sleep, he struggled to drop off, remembering the strength of his feelings while making love to her. If all she wanted was one night’s comfort, he’d done his job and would have to overcome those feelings but he felt like he’d possibly be letting go of something really special. But if she felt he same way (and he had an inkling from what he’d seen in her eyes that she might have felt the connection too) then what? Could they make it work with a 20 year age gap? He didn’t know if she wanted children but from the conversation they’d had at the restaurant over the salad leaves, he’d guess at yes. How would that work? Would she want them with this old man? Would he want them with her? 

Looking back, once he’d got to 50, he’d basically written off the idea of becoming a dad, feeling that he was too old to change and that it wouldn’t be fair on the children themselves to saddle them with what he saw as such an old parent. And he’d not had a girlfriend in any case so it had seemed academic. But if there were someone asking him to have kids with her, who didn’t see his age as a problem, then what? “Slow down buddy you’re jumping the gun” he realised. He fell into a restless


	6. After the night before

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claire and Keanu deal (or don't) with the consequences of their night together

Claire woke first the next morning. They’d stopped spooning at some point during the night and Keanu was lying on his back with one arm up on the pillow near his face. He looked angelic and so much younger than his 55 years. Claire thought back to the night before and the powerful physical sensations and feelings he’d stirred in her. She was confused by her decision now to ask him to make love to her. It was what she needed and desired at the time, but she hadn’t listened to his warning about the consequences and now, despite the pleasure and comfort it had brought her, she regretted it. A door had been opened that couldn’t be closed and she wasn’t sure walking through it was going to bring her happiness. She was afraid she was falling in love with a man 20 years her senior who, it seemed, thought it was too late to have children – something she had always thought would be in her future. She needed to decide quickly what to say to him when he woke up. Would it be awkward? – normally with a lover you knew if you were going to wake up and snuggle then make love again or wake up and walk away. Even if she wanted to, she couldn’t do the latter as it was her home and he was her guest. Maybe they could just go back to being friends - “yeah right, who am I kidding after what he did for me last night?!” 

She knew honesty was the best policy but she wasn’t ready to have a deep conversation just yet – especially one that she feared might mean he would leave because he thought it couldn’t work between them. She wasn’t a game player or manipulator, but she wasn’t past using avoidance as a tactic. 

She lay next to him then, just staring at and admiring the perfect bone structure of his face and his strong, muscular arms. He seemed to sense her watching him and opened his eyes.

“Bonjour” she greeted him

“Bonjour to you too” he said softly smiling.

“I hope you slept well, listen I’m going to go fetch the bread for breakfast. Can you start a pot of coffee? - and then, if it’s OK with you, after we’ve eaten, I’d like to do something fun for a change. Maybe we can go and hire you a bike and I can show you some more of the island? You should experience the cycling here before you leave.”

“OK, sure - I’d like that very much”

He desperately wanted to know how she felt about last night but thought that maybe comfort was all she had wanted after all and just for one night. Maybe she hadn’t felt the same connection and was able to just walk away – if so, he’d have to too. He’d slept restlessly because of his thoughts about it. He held his curiosity in check and rose with her to dress and get breakfast ready.

They feasted on coffee, croissants and pain au levant (sour dough) with butter and jam. Keanu joked that he’d need to back to the gym after this trip as she could feel his stomach thickening as a result of all the delicious food. 

“Well the bike ride will help you burn off some calories I guess” she said 

After their plates were empty, they tidied away and prepared a few things to take with them on the bike ride – a bottle of water, a first aid kit and some biscuits plus a rug in case they wanted to stop and rest somewhere. Then they made their way down to the village and the bike rental place to find a suitable bike. She walked along with her own bike so they could ride on together on their trip straight away.

They headed south first to Ars en Re across the vine fields - its church spire (tall and white and topped with a black cone) acting as a guide to them of how far they had left to go. They stopped there and mooched around the shops including an artists’ studio on the harbour. Keanu recognised the artist’s work from postcards he’d seen in the local shops and decided to go in and look at purchasing a full-size piece. They really captured the essence of the island and he thought he’d like a memory of it on his wall at home. He found one with sailing boats and the harbour and church in the background and bought it - Claire helped with arranging extra payment for carriage home rather than risk damaging it on the flight. 

Afterwards, they carried on across the salt marshes where they stopped to buy some local salt ‘en directe’ that Claire said she’d take home for cooking. The cycle paths were empty with it being early in the season and they could ride side by side and talk. They each purposefully kept the conversation light – the film, the restaurant , the new John Wick film that Keanu would start filming soon and so on - no mention was made of the night before. 

It was 1pm when they reached the next village (La Couarde sue Mer) and they chose a little restaurant in the village centre that Claire knew to have lunch. Keanu had gone in to use the bathroom passing a man in chef’s whites as he went who turned out to be the owner. On seeing Claire arrive he had immediately come out – he kissed her on both cheeks and offered his condolences about her father. Keanu thought he recognised him from the wake – he hoped he was gone by the time he got back - he didn’t want any particular attention. Happily, that was the case and they enjoyed a bowl of mussels and chips each only getting a couple of curious glances from waiters and fellow patrons – the look Keanu recognised as ‘don’t I know you from somewhere?’! 

Claire encouraged him to take the Eclade de moules which was the local speciality – a slightly creamy sauce over the mussels flavoured mildly with curry. Claire took the traditional moules marinieres and said they could swap if he didn’t like the “eclade” – once he’d tucked in, he wasn’t going to relinquish the bowl however – it was surprisingly tasty!

After lunch, they went down to the beach for a while and sat on the rocks watching the waves. Claire pointed out the tourist beaches along the coast down to Le Bois Plage and St Marie and the wilder coast up towards her home village. They could also see the other larger island of Oleron across the way and she shared some of the local history. 

“We could take a boat trip if you like one day – there’s some really interesting history about Napoleon on Ile d’Aix with a little museum to explore. 

“No way!” Keanu chuckled “that would be most excellent”

“are you being sarcastic?” Claire asked, a quizzical look on her face.

“We really need to watch a couple of my movies you know!” he said emphatically – “I’ll have you know, that was not sarcasm but a reference to a film called “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure” in which I travel though time and kidnap Napoleon to help me pass a history exam. It’s kind of famous!”

“Oh sounds weird! - I’m so sorry I don’t know it”

“Well, I guess you would only have been about, errm, let’s do the math, 5 when it came out! He laughed and shook his head, “Man I am so old!”

“Well you don’t seem it to me!” she said meeting his eyes and blushing as did he. 

“Hey why don’t we try get Netflix or whatever set up later and I can show you it - then maybe we could take that boat trip next time it’s running and see all that Napoleonic history?” They had had such a nice time so far that day that he’d started to forget about the night before and he wanted to keep things light and away from any complements between them which might take them back into that territory.

They agreed to return home next, stopping for provisions for dinner. Later they booked tickets for the boat trip when it would next be running in a couple of days and organised their film night for the evening.

They chose Bill and Ted and Point Break to watch that night, both of which Claire loved especially the Napoleon moments in B&TEA and the foot chase in Point Break. 

Over the next few days they had a total break from death related jobs and from the location scouting with Claire playing tourist guide. They did more cycle rides through forests and to beaches. Claire joked that Keanu should demonstrate his surfing skills but he said it had been way too long since he’d done it – he’d get wiped in the spring tides! 

The boat trip was a wonderful excursion and took them from the island’s capital St Martin then around the coastline and under the island’s spectacular bridge before heading out past Ile d’Oleron and the famous Fort Boyard (where the real life Papillon of film fame was imprisoned) Finally it went on to Ile d’Aix where Napoleon stayed in exile before going to St Helena. Keanu loved history and relished seeing the house where he had stayed and the artefacts. Before catching the boat home they also had chance to grab a sandwich and walk around some of the island which was tiny at only 7km around. 

By the time they got home they were exhausted and had a simple supper of bread and cheese before slumping down to watch another movie. Claire was loving watching his old films that she’d missed growing up. Yesterday had been Speed and The Matrix – quite an overwhelming action combo. Tonight they thought one would be all they could manage but they struggled to decide. Keanu had made a list of the titles that he thought were the key ones she should see and numbered them off - Claire picked a number - it was “The Lake House.”

They settled next to each other on the sofa. At the porch scene, Claire needed a tissue and by the end, tears were streaming down her face. 

“That was truly beautiful” she sniffed as the theme song struck up again.

“Thanks, I like it” Keanu said humbly. Their eyes locked as McCartney sang ‘this never happened before’ and ‘this is the way it should be for lovers’ over and over. Claire looked down and took a breath.

“It never happened to me before either” she whispered looking up again, her eyes pleading with him to understand her meaning.

“You’re talking about what we did the other night?” he stated

“Yes she said, well not just that but yes, it was ………. beyond wonderful. I know I asked only to be comforted, and I needed the physical release - and you gave me that ……… but then I got something else I wasn’t expecting. The, errrm 

“Connection?” he interjected.

“Yes!” she agreed emphatically.

“A connection like that, well it was something I’ve only felt once before ………… and, well, it took my breath away”, she looked at him searching to see his thoughts reflected in his expression.

He took her hand in his and whispered

“I felt it too.”

Her shoulders visibly relaxed as the knowledge that the feelings were shared. 

“So, what are we going to do about it?” she asked? 

“Honestly, I don’t know. That night, I could hardly sleep for thinking about it. I wondered how you felt – then after you just never mentioned it these past few days, I decided that maybe one night of physical closeness was all you wanted. I need you to know that I didn’t come here planning to take advantage of you, I just wanted to help but now I feel so much for you after such a short time”

He paused and she could read the doubt in his eyes

“But?”

“But” he paused again trying to find the right words “even though my feelings are so strong, I don’t know if we’re right for each other, I mean because I may not be able to give you what you want from life, because maybe I’m too old for you”

“You’re only as old as you feel right?” she countered

“Yes, but shit man it’s 20 years! And there’s mortality to consider, and ……” there was a (quite literally) pregnant pause.

“babies” she said, naming the elephant in the room.

“and yes, there’s babies – if you want them. I’m not sure I do, not now. I’m set in my ways. I’m often away filming for months on end. I will be again soon, in New York, for several months. It can be quite a gypsy existence. And who knows if my sperm are still capable!’ he chuckled. 

She leaned in and kissed him gently, cupping his cheek with her left hand

“So what happened to seizing the day, to living in the moment because we’re all gonna die anyway? - that’s what you said on the plane when we talked about grief.”

He repeated her gesture, softly kissing her. Closed lipped and cupping her face in his hand.

“Claire I just don’t wanna hurt you and I’m scared I might. If it weren’t for the age difference, I’d rush to start a relationship with you but” he paused again. “There’s a character I played in a movie. I think you’d like it. It’s romantic and there are vineyards in it! Anyway my character, Paul, he’s married, but to a wife who he married in a hurry in the war and it turns out when he returns that they’re completely incompatible. He meets and falls in love with another woman who falls for him too but after kissing her and very nearly making love, he pulls away and says < _> ” _

_He recited it sincerely, word for word from the movie, reliving the moment as Paul Sutton. So I feel a bit like him. I’m not married, well not to a woman at least, but maybe a little bit, no a lot, to acting and to my freedom to pursue it. I want to do the right thing by you and I’m not sure getting into a relationship is it.”_

_Her eyes filled with tears and he implored her to understand, a pained expression in his eyes._

_“I have commitments too you know, things I’d have to compromise on to make time for you. That’s what relationships are about right? Love on the one hand and compromise on the other?”_

_“ah ha” he replied yet still sounding doubtful._

_Claire sighed, her eyes sad and still teary “well, I’m going to bed. I’m glad we talked but I’m tired now. I’ll see you in the morning”_

_Keanu didn’t answer, staring glumly at his hands which lay in his lap and she got up and went upstairs to bed._

_“Fuck” he whispered as he sat alone and disconsolate._

_He went to bed too where he slept restlessly, thinking each time he stirred that he could just go to her and say yes to trying to make it work, but the more he thought about that option, the more the fear of failure and heartache if it didn’t work grew in his mind. By 6am, he was convinced that fleeing the scene was the only option._

_He had two more restaurants to visit within a 100 miles of La Rochelle and decided to go to them on the motorbike he’d hired and take some time to think. He wrote Claire a note explaining that he thought a breather would be good right now and he’d be back in a couple of days. Slinging a few clean clothes and his toiletries in a backpack, he hit the open road.  
_


	7. Parting and Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keanu leaves to clear his head but when he returns Claire is gone

Both restaurants were in the Charentais countryside between La Rochelle and Poitiers and, as ever, riding a bike through the countryside was a tonic to his soul. The second of the two which he visited on the second day on the way back to the island seemed a perfect match and he caught himself thinking it might work out well if he was with Claire. She might want to come on location with him so she could easily visit the island. 

“Don’t be so fucking ridiculous buddy boy” he cursed himself “how can that ever happen when you’ve basically made it clear that the love or whatever it is you feel for her isn’t strong enough to overcome your worries about the age gap and the compromises needed to make a relationship work? You wanted to stop yourself from hurting her and you’ve gone ahead and done it anyway and now you might have lost the only good thing that’s happened to you since, what? Jen 20 years ago. And for what, because you’re too scared to commit, because ‘you only make promises you can keep’. Because despite all the evidence to the contrary, you think you can control everything. You’re such a dumb fuck. You haven’t felt anything close to this for so long and yet you’re prepared to walk away because it’s not totally perfect, because there’ll have to be give and take?” 

As he rode on, he felt more and more stupid for leaving in the first place - he should have had a glass half full attitude and taken a leap of faith for once. Why didn’t he listen to her when she reminded him that his mantra was to seize the day? He hoped she’d listen to and accept his apology.

He pulled up at the house in St Clement in the early evening 2 days after leaving. He pushed on the gate but found it was locked. Looking towards the house through the railings, he could see that the shutters were all closed. He rang Claire’s mobile but it went straight to voicemail.

“Shit!”

He drove the bike down to the village and the restaurant, hoping to find her there. 

At the bar, the waiter greeted him

“Ah monsieur Reeves, I have something for you. Mademoiselle Bonnevin has left you a key for the house. She has had to return to Los Angeles. She left you a note as well – here”

“Ah thanks” Keanu replied feeling crushed at Claire’s absence.

“Was there an emergency back home?”

“She did not say, though she did say she will be back in September”

Keanu thanked the waiter, taking the note and heading back to let himself into Claire’s home. It felt weird being there without her and he resolved to head home after her at the earliest opportunity. Her note was brief like his and gave no real clue as to why she’d had to go. She didn’t even mention where she was going nor how she was feeling. He tried calling her again but still got the voicemail – she might not even be off her flight yet he reasoned.

2 days later he found himself back at home, exhausted from the long trek to Paris and on to LA. He fell into bed to sleep off the jet lag, resolving to see Claire at the earliest opportunity.  
,   
He pulled up at the restaurant on his bike the next afternoon. His stomach was churning wondering how he’d be received. 

He entered as before through the teaching kitchen and was happy to hear Claire’s voice coming from the office. She was on a call and her eyes widened like saucers when she saw him put his head round the door. 

She hurried to finish the call though when she hung up, she didn’t look at him, but sat still and silent at her desk.

“Claire?”

She turned then and he could see that her eyes were brimming with unshed tears

“Keanu, what are you doing here?” she sniffed, still avoiding direct eye contact. 

“I’ve come to say sorry for being a dumb fuck” he said pushing his hand through his hair and mussing it up completely. “I’ve come to see if you’ll forgive me for, errr running away like a big man baby.”

She turned now to meet his eyes at last.

“And I’ve come to say I’m ready to, you know, follow my heart, seize the day and stop being a goddam idiot” was his reply “Please forgive me Claire!” he beseeched her, dropping gracefully to crouch by the chair where she sat.

“You’ll help me to stop being such a schmuck won’t you Claire, please say something?”

She bent her head touching her forehead to his then she sighed and smiled through her tears.

“How can anyone resist you and your beautiful puppy dog eyes!” she exclaimed eliciting a chuckle and a blush from him? “Yes, I will help you Keanu, but listen to me carefully, you “dumb fuck” as you call yourself, promise me not to run out on me like that again – or there’ll be hell to pay!” she warned teasingly

“Yes mam!” He smiled through the tears of relief that had started to fall and he tentatively kissed her softly on the lips. 

Her eyes shone now with happiness at his change of heart and she gently kissed him back.

He let out another relieved sigh, opening his mouth to hers as she kissed him more deeply. 

He pulled back “when do you get off work?” he enquired.

“why, do you have plans for me?” 

“I’m sure I could think of something to entertain us back at my place” he grinned now. 

“Well, I’ll have to ask my boss if I can get off early” she laughed “oh yes” she said almost immediately, “she says I can take however long I need”

“Good, that’s very kind of her” he laughed “you OK to ride on my bike? I brought a spare helmet, I hoped you’d forgive me!”

“I think I can manage that”

Up at his house in the Hollywood hills, Keanu gave her the tour of his place and they want out on the patio to enjoy the view and the last of the day’s sun. Keanu handed her a glass of champagne.

“Wow you had some standing by on ice?”

“I usually do” he grinned “and especially when I know someone special might be coming over”

She set her glass down and stepped into his arms and hugged him tight

“You know I thought I’d lost you – and all because you’re older than me”

“I know, that was a stupid reason for throwing away such a good thing. I’m so sorry for putting you through that”

“come over here”, she said pointing to one of the loungers on the patio and guiding him to sit down.

“Ever since you made love to me, I’ve been fantasizing about making love to you”

“Oh yeah?” he said smirking

“ah ha – and being the one to take charge of things” she said as she sat astride his legs. Her full breasts pressed into him as she lent down for a kiss and started to grind her hips against his hard-on.

“I don’t want you to think I’m some passive little girl” she explained as she started to unbutton his shirt and stroke his chest. 

“glad to hear it” he said pulling her into a passionate kiss which left them both breathless.

“Let’s go to your room” she said suddenly – “we’ll have more room, to manoeuvre.“

“you know you are simply going to have to stop quoting my movies without ever having seen them- it’s quite freaky!, he laughed – that’s a line from that film about the soldier I told you about.

“Ohhh so we get to see you “on manoeuvres” in that one then?”

He laughed “well not really, nothing that risqué, just kissing mainly, there are others to watch for that!”

“Ooooh I feel a film night coming on” she giggled. “Keanu porn hub night!” 

He burst out laughing at that

“You can just stick to the real thing my love, OK?”

“If you insist” she kissed him again then climbed off him to allow him to stand up and take her to the bedroom where they undressed each other slowly and lay down on the bed. 

“Now let’s get you ready for action she said, where are the condoms?” 

He didn’t answer straight away and she looked at him expectantly

“Would it be OK with you if we don’t?” he asked “I want to feel you with every part of me, to feel your hot wetness connecting you to me”

She groaned, “but what if?”

“Claire if you got pregnant right away by some lucky fluke, then I’d be a very, very happy, expectant dad” 

“You Sure?”

“I’m sure! – I’ve had time to think over the past few days. Before you, Claire I’d just written it off, I didn’t think I’d meet anyone, I thought it was too late. I told myself it left me free of complications – but I had to admit to myself that ever since losing Ava, there’s been a hole in my life. And if we can fill that hole together, I know now that it would make me very happy.”

Claire sighed, smiling with relief and then proceeded to take charge as she’d promised. Keanu’s cock was already hard and hot, standing to attention and she knelt next to him and sunk her mouth over it, licking up and down the shaft and around the head drawing groans and twitches from him. 

When she couldn’t wait any longer, she positioned herself between his legs and fisted his cock until he begged her to be careful or he’d lose control. She lifted up on her haunches and moved her legs to rest outside of his before raising up on her knees. She teased him still further - kissing him but holding off from letting him penetrate her, mentally preparing herself for entry, remembering the sensations from the week before. Finally, placing one hand flat on his chest, she used the other to guide his thick member into her hot pussy, by now oozing with love juice which ran down his shaft and eased his entry. She started to move up and down, tentatively at first as his girth stretched her to her limits. 

Gradually she was able to take him in further and he started to thrust his hips up, holding tightly onto hers. She swayed above him, occasionally grabbing her own breasts and running her hands through her long black hair before returning her hands to his chest to increase her leverage and move faster and faster up and down.

Her breath was coming in short pants and he knew she was going to come as she was squeezing him with the muscles of her vagina and moaning louder now. Finally she gave into the orgasm, pussy pulsing around him. As he felt the contractions fade away, he pulled her down harder onto him and started thrusting up in earnest – once, twice, three, four times and he shouted out “Claire, yes, yes , yes” as his own orgasm took him - again feeling like a wave crashing on the shore. He pulled her down against his chest and held her tight, kissing her neck.

“fingers crossed” he whispered before they snuggled and fell asleep.  



	8. The lighthouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keanu and Claire return to Ile de Re

May 2021

“So do you wanna go up the lighthouse then? - since we didn’t get to do it last time”

“What because of my temporary insanity!?” he laughed.

“exactement, c’est ca” she teased

They were back in France. John Wick 4 had premiered in LA the week before and now they were on the promotional tour for Europe. Filming of Keanu’s chef movie was also due to start in June so they would be in Europe for several months. They’d taken a weekend off to visit the house and restaurant in St Clement des Baleines. Claire had suggested they visit the 19th century lighthouse which graced the end of the island, looking out across the Atlantic towards the US to the west and north to the Vendee coast. There was a spiral staircase to the top numbering 257 steps.

“You sure you’re up to it old man!? – we can just go and have lunch if you like.”

“You cheeky minx – of course I am up to it. You better watch out or I’ll get my John Wick on!”

“Come on then Mr Big Shot, let’s go!” She grabbed his hand and they bought their tickets for the ascent of the lighthouse. They were both a little out of breath by the time they reached the top though Claire a tad more than Keanu who was still in pretty good shape from the long period working on John Wick 4.

There was a fresh wind at the top and they stood looking out over the sea. Keanu stood behind Claire, wrapping his arms around her to keep the chill off her.

“So let me tell you about “les baleines” she said. See those patterns on the sea down there. What do you see?”

“They sort of look like fish tails he said”

“Exactly – whale tails. The pattern of the rocks underneath and the shape of the headland makes the sea have that pattern. You get the same thing sometimes on a beach when there’s a rip tide. And that’s why the village and the lighthouse are named after whales.”

“Well it’s beautiful, just like you” he said giving her a quick squeeze. “You ready to go down now? I need a coffee to warm up”

“Sure in a minute. I just wanted to talk to you about how long I can stay during the filming.”

“Oh yeah?, I thought you were staying the whole time.” He said surprised “Do you need to go back to the restaurant sooner than you thought?”

“Well let me see, so June will be our 2nd month, then . ..” she started counting on her fingers and working through the months in French “juilliet, aout, septembre, Octobre, novembre. So yes I’ll need to get back by November at the latest, that’s gonna be a really big month for me but maybe even October could be pretty big I think”

“Why, what’s happening then? you’re talking in riddles!”

“Just make sure you’re back in January Reeves, OK? I’ll let you work it out” she said looking very pleased with herself.

“Tell me!” 

“uh uh – no you have to work out my riddle!”

“Damn!” he thought for a moment, then he decided the months and counting must have something to do with it.

“So June is 2, July is 3 …..” he carried on counting up the months til he got to 9 and January then at last the penny dropped.

“You’re pregnant?!”

“Yes, sweetheart, we’re going to have a baby. I know, I know, there are no guarantees, but hopefully this time next year we will have a little one” She was positively bubbling over with excitement.

“Come ‘ere” he kissed and hugged her and hugged her some more until she had to struggle away to breathe!

“I love you, sweetheart” he murmured “that’s the best news, how long have you known?”

“only a couple of days – I did a test when you were off doing that junket in Paris. I just thought it would be fitting to tell you here, where we fell in love”

“yes it is! I’m so sorry I never got to meet your Dad but I’m grateful to him for helping us get together!”

“me too”

“we’ll have to get you some medical cover while we are here” he said somewhat anxiously.

“I know darling, I know – and I will, please don’t worry. We’ll make sure everything is OK every step of the way. I know how scary this will be for you.

He looked down and squeezed her hand “thank you ……. for understanding”

They kissed one more time then made their descent of the lighthouse, ready for their next adventure.

THE END


End file.
